USA Today and Gallup split

1/18/13 3:54 PM EST

USA Today and Gallup, the polling organization, have announced a mutual decision to end their 20-year partnership.

"For 2013, USA Today and Gallup have made a mutual decision to move in different directions," the newspaper said in a statement. "USA Today is in the final stages of negotiating an arrangement with another polling organization."

In its own statement, Gallup said "the worlds of journalism and survey research have been changing and evolving" since the two organizations first partnered.

"Gallup in recent years has increasingly focused its polling and reporting on its unprecedented Daily tracking program, its monthly Gallup Poll Social Series, and its World Poll. Additionally, Gallup.com has become the major outlet for Gallup’s work, attracting more than 18 million unique visitors in 2012 for our political, economic, wellbeing, and world news," Gallup said.

"Given these shifts, Gallup and USA Today have made a mutual decision to move in independent directions beginning in 2013, and Gallup will evolve the polling it conducted in partnership with USA Today in some different and new strategic directions. As it has been, Gallup.com will remain the primary source for Gallup polls conducted in the U.S. and around the world."